Department for Transport

Road Traffic

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much they estimate that traffic congestion costs the economy in time wasted (1) in London, and (2) in the 21 most congested UK cities, according to the 2016 INRIX report Europe's Traffic Hotspots: Measuring the Impact of Congestion in Europe.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Department for Transport does not routinely estimate congestion costs however, as part of the Eddington study in 2006, the Department estimated congestion costs in the most congested Local Authorities and in 2009 published a congestion map as part of the DASTS (Delivering A Sustainable Transport Strategy) City and Regional Networks Data Book showing the most congested towns and cities. The DASTS Databook Annex14 is available at:http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20090511045027/http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/strategy/databook/ However, due to both the use of different methodologies, geographies as well as the age of the above analysis, it is not possible to compare the Departments historic analysis of congestion costs with those of INRIX.

Driving: Eyesight

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Think Bike Think Biker and Tiredness Kills campaigns, what plans they have to launch a campaign to encourage drivers to get their eyes tested.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The purpose of THINK! is to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads. Campaign priorities are determined on this basis. They are thoroughly researched and evidenced using casualty data, road safety literature and audience insight. Decades of road safety communications and sixteen years of THINK! campaign activity have demonstrated the importance of focusing our interventions in areas where we think communications can make the greatest difference to safe road user behaviour. We continually evaluate priorities for the THINK! campaign, reviewing casualty statistics on an ongoing basis to ensure that our campaigns have the greatest impact on road safety. We currently have no plans to develop a campaign that encourages drivers to get their eyes tested.

Roads: Accidents

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to ensure that all road traffic accident reports include, as a matter of routine, an assessment of whether poor vision was a factor.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: All personal-injury accidents on the public highway that are attended by a police officer should be recorded and reported to the Department for Transport. The set of information collected for each accident includes a list of factors which, in the judgement of the police officer, contributed to the accident. One of these factors is ‘uncorrected, defective eyesight’. Police officers attending accidents should record this feature in all cases where poor vision was a factor.

Railways: Fares

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of proposed rises in train fares.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Government regulates the price of certain rail fares in order to protect passengers. Other fares are unregulated, and train operators are permitted to set these on a commercial basis, taking account of competition between operators and from other transport modes and the need to attract business in order to grow their revenue. This Government has committed to capping regulated rail fares at RPI+0% for the term of this Parliament to 2020, which means that people’s earnings have on average risen faster than regulated rail fares this year. This will benefit over a quarter of a million annual season ticket holders, providing an average saving of £425 in the five years to 2020.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, under the current technical specifications for interoperability, what height differences between station platforms and top of rail level are allowed for new HS2 stations; what heights are specified by HS2 for new train floor height and station platform heights; and what derogation, if any, they have sought and received to those heights for new HS2 platforms.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The current European Infrastructure Technical Standard for Interoperability (TSI) allows platform heights of 550mm or 760mm above rail level (ARL). In addition, the UK currently has a ‘National Technical Rule’ which includes a ‘Specific Case’ allowing platform heights of 915mm ARL, reflecting the historic platform height on the majority of our existing network. HS2 is not, as such, proposing to specify a train floor height. What we will be asking rolling stock manufacturers (RSMs) to do is to provide level access to a platform height of 1115mm, or, if they do not believe that is achievable, to tell us at what height platform they could provide level access. We have proposed to the European Commission an amendment to the current European standards to allow for our preferred platform height and we remain in discussions with them with a view to securing the ability to adopt our preferred platform height through these or alternative means.

High Speed 2 Railway Line: Euston Station

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether HS2 Ltd followed European procurement rules in seeking bids for Euston station master planning and architectural work; and which companies submitted conforming bids.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: HS2 Ltd is required to follow the Utilities Contracts Regulations (these enshrine the European procurement rules), which it did for the Euston Station Vision and Master Plan work. Seven firms were invited to tender; these were AECOM-Hyder, Arup, Atkins, Capita Symonds-Ineco, Jacobs, Mott Macdonald and WSP UK Ltd and 3 conforming bids were received.

Cycleways: Invalid Vehicles

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there are any cycle lanes in the UK to which mobility scooters have full access; whether they have considered making this a condition for the construction of fixed cycle lanes; and whether there are any legislative barriers to providing such access.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Provision of cycling infrastructure, including cycle lanes, is the responsibility of the local traffic authority. The Department for Transport does not hold data on the number of cycle lanes, nor whether mobility scooters are able to access them. It is for traffic authorities to decide what type of lane to provide and where.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Planning Permission

Baroness Gardner of Parkes: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have considered advising local authorities to extend the consultation period of planning applications which include bank holiday periods; and if not, why not.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: No, we have not considered this. Local authorities are already obliged to consult on proposals for development in their area; the consultation period usually lasts for 21 days and we believe this period strikes an appropriate balance between ensuring sufficient consultation with the community and an efficient determination period for the applicant.However, where statutory consultation is required, article 22(3) of the Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order 2015 gives local authorities and statutory consultees the opportunity to agree in writing to a period other than 21 days in which to provide responses if necessary.

Housing: Construction

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the Office for Budget Responsibility comments on page 51 of their report Economic and fiscal outlook, published on 23 November, regarding housebuilding and residential investment.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The Autumn Statement announced an expansion of the Shared Ownership and Affordable Homes Programme (SOAHP) 2016-21, allocating an additional £1.4 billion to the programme for a further 40,000 housing starts by 2021. We remain committed to Shared Ownership which has an important role to play, but it is important that government also enables providers to deliver a variety of tenures that support a wide range of people in different circumstances.Page 51 of the OBR's "Economic and fiscal outlook" refers to its assessment of the impact of this change. The Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) has taken one particular approach to its forecasting model, but would themselves acknowledge the uncertainty around their forecast. It will review its forecast as new data becomes available.Housing associations themselves are saying that the tenure flexibility and funding will help them build more and the National Housing Federation has said it "will give housing associations the freedom and confidence to build even more affordable homes, more quickly, across the country''.

Estates Regeneration Advisory Panel

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 17 November (HL3179), who are the members of the Estate Regeneration Advisory Panel, and how many meetings have been held so far in this financial year.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The Estate Regeneration Advisory Panel has met five times since February 2016. A number of Advisory Panel sub-groups have also met to consider issues such as resident engagement, financeand design. The Advisory Panel has informed the Estate Regeneration National Strategy.The following are members of the Estate Regeneration Advisory Panel:Councillor Ravi Govindia, Leader of Wandsworth Council.Nicholas Boys Smith, Director of Create Streets.Andrew Boff, Leader of the Greater London Authority Conservatives housing group.Elaine Bailey, Chief Executive of Hyde Housing Association.Paul Tennant, Chief Executive of Orbit Housing Association.Tony Pidgley CBE, Chairman of the Berkeley Group.Peter Vernon, Chief Executive of Grosvenor Britain & Ireland.Jane Duncan, President of the Royal Institute of British Architects.Ben Bolgar, Senior Director at the Prince’s Foundation.Dominic Grace, Head of London Residential Development at Savills.Emma Cariaga, Project Director at British Land.David Budd, Mayor of Middlesbrough.Natalie Elphicke OBE, Chief Executive of the Housing & Finance Institute.Graham Allen MP, Member of Parliament for Nottingham North.Félicie Krikler, Director at Assael Architecture.Lord Andrew Mawson, Director of Andrew Mawson Partnerships.

Parks

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 27 October (HL2320), how many Pocket Parks have been delivered to date.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: Eighty seven pocket parks have been created in predominantly deprived neighbourhoods under the government funded pocket parks programme.

Housing and Planning Act 2016

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the estimated timetable for the publication of (1) responses to the consultations on provisions contained in the Housing and Planning Act 2016, and (2) the secondary legislation required to implement those provisions.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: Officials are continuing their work on the implementation of the Housing & Planning Act 2016. The process to implement secondary legislation will be on-going throughout 2017, as will the process to consult and publish on specific sections of the Act.

Housing Completions

Lord Birt: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many new housing completions have occurred since 2010; and what is the estimated increase in the UK's population during that period.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: Over 893,000 additional homes have been delivered in England since April 2010.Full information including a breakdown by new build, conversion, change of use and other changes is available (attached) at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-net-supply-of-housingFigures show an estimated increase of 2.1438 million in the population of England between mid-2010 and mid-2015. Full information, including historical population estimates for the UK and England, is published by the Office for National Statistics, and available (attached) at the following link:http://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates



Housing supply
(Excel SpreadSheet, 31 KB)




Population of England
(Excel SpreadSheet, 19 KB)

World War II: Genocide

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consultation, if any, and what reasons, led to the announcement in January by the former Prime Minister, David Cameron, that a National Holocaust Memorial should be sited in Victoria Tower Gardens.

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to meet the authorities of both Houses of Parliament, Westminster City Council, the Thorney Island Society and other local residents and interested parties, to discuss the implications of a National Holocaust Memorial in Victoria Tower Gardens.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: In 2014 the Prime Minister’s cross-party Holocaust Commission undertook a nationwide public consultation, receiving more than 2500 responses to its Call for Evidence. This resulted in the Commission recommending the creation of a new National Memorial to the Holocaust and an accompanying Learning Centre to be prominently located in Central London.Following an extensive search across central London, which included discussions within Government and with property owners and developers across Central London; invitations to respond to a site specification; and a thorough search by property agents CBRE, Victoria Tower Gardens was identified as a possible location for the Memorial.The Memorial will serve as a reminder of the depths of depravity that a seemingly enlightened society can plunge to if it abandons its democratic values, and the importance of constant vigilance in protecting these values. There could be no more powerful or appropriate location to make such a statement than next to Parliament. As a result, and following consultation with Westminster City Council and The Royal Parks, the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation, which advises DCLG in this matter, recommended that the Memorial be located in Victoria Tower Gardens. This was announced by the Government in January 2016.

World War II: Genocide

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to contribute financially to a National Holocaust Memorial, wherever that might be sited, with or without an attached visitor and learning centre; and if so, to what extent.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: In January 2015, Government announced that it was accepting all the recommendations of the Prime Minister’s Holocaust Commission. In doing so, Government also committed £50 million as its contribution to total project costs.

Local Government: Newspaper Press

Lord Porter of Spalding: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the 24 local pilot programmes on statutory notices; and what plans they have to make statutory notices more cost-effective.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: We are grateful to the local pilots for the work they have done on options for the future of statutory notices, which are important tools to ensure that the public are kept informed of decisions and changes that affect them as individuals and communities. We are considering the reports of the pilot programmes carefully.

Non-domestic Rates: Appeals

Lord Porter of Spalding: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of unresolved business rates appeals on financial planning in local government.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: Since 2013, local authorities have been required to set aside some of their business rates as "provisions" to meet the cost of future business rates appeals. The timing of the settlement of those appeals, therefore, is less relevant to local authorities' financial planning than their ability to estimate the scale of future appeal losses. We have agreed with local government that the difficulty of estimating future appeal losses, together with the way in which the business rates retention scheme deals with those losses, can impact adversely on authorities' financial planning and finances. In designing the new 100 per cent business rates retention scheme, therefore, we are looking again, in collaboration with local government representatives, at the way in which the new system should deal with appeal losses and aim to bring forward proposals shortly.

Community Relations

Lord Mawson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to encourage people from different ethnic and religious backgrounds to work together on projects and programmes in local communities.

Lord Mawson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what lessons they have learned from projects with hands-on practical experience of building integrated communities; how they will build on the success of those projects; and what role those projects will play in achieving the changes that are recommended in The Casey Review: a review into opportunity and integration.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The government is committed to building more integrated communities and widening opportunity. We have spent over £60 million on integration projects since 2010/11, helping to create the conditions for people to live successfully alongside each other.This includes funding for community – based tuition to help isolated adults to learn English and the Near Neighbours programme, supporting well over 1,000 small projects bringing people together across faith, social and ethnic boundaries.The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government has made clear he will be studying Dame Louise’s findings closely. As part of those considerations, we will look to learn from our existing integration projects. In spring, we will come to the House with our plans for tackling the issues raised by Dame Louise, so that we can continue to build a country that works for everyone.

Community Relations

Lord Mawson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what evidence there is that practical lessons have been learnt from past research conducted into integration in British communities.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: Dame Louise Casey's Review into integration and opportunity published on the 5 December takes account of academic and other research and considers previous community cohesion reports and programmes. The government will be studying her Report carefully and will publish a response in the spring.

Community Relations

Lord Mawson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much has been spent over the last five years on studies about integration in British communities and what impact this has had, if any.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The only comprehensive study, in the last five years, has been Dame Louise Casey's Review into integration and opportunity, published on 5 December 2016.A number of Departments will have undertaken studies in support of policy objectives related to integration, however information on the cost of these studies is not held centrally.

Opportunity and Integration Review

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they intend to give a formal response to the Casey Review.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: I refer the noble Lord to the Statement (attached) I gave on 5 December, repeating the answer given earlier that day by my rt Hon Friend, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, to an Urgent Question on Dame Louise Casey’s review into opportunity and integration.



Casey Review
(PDF Document, 79.13 KB)

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Exhaust Emissions

Lord Stunell: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress they have made on setting out their policies and proposals to meet their emissions targets due to be included in their emission reduction plan; and when they will publish them.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: We are making good progress following Parliamentary agreement on the 4th and 5th Carbon Budgets. We are engaging with businesses, industry, and stakeholders, and we are looking forward to publishing a plan in early 2017.

Nissan

Lord Davies of Stamford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of (1) the maximum, and (2) the likely, total cost of any regional, employment, training, subsidy, grant, incentive payment, or other financial support, which Nissan UK might be entitled to receive over the next (a) five, and (b) 10, years.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: I refer the noble Lord to my statement to the House on 31 October 2016, Official Report, Vol. 776.



BNR Statement 31st Oct 2016 on Nissan: Sunderland
(PDF Document, 3.21 MB)

Energy: Prices

Viscount Ridley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they plan to take to implement the recommendations of the Kelly report Management of the Levy Control Framework: Lessons Learned Report (2015).

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: On 25 November, BEIS published a response to the Management of the Levy Control Framework Lessons Learned Report which set out the actions being taken against each of the recommendations raised in the report including progress to date.

Energy: Prices

Viscount Ridley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will resume publication of the estimated impacts of energy and climate policies on energy prices and bills, as part of its commitment to increased transparency, as recommended in the Kelly report Management of the Levy Control Framework: Lessons Learned Report (2015).

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The Department is currently considering this issue, along with the other recommendations and actions arising from the Public Accounts Committee hearing on the Levy Control Framework that took place on 30 November. A response to the Committee will be submitted in due course.

Energy: Prices

Viscount Ridley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, and if so when, the non-executive directors of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy will be asked to review implementation of the Kelly report Management of the Levy Control Framework: Lessons Learned Report (2015).

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The Levy Control Framework, including progress against the recommendations in the Kelly report, is considered as part of the normal course of business for the Department’s Audit and Risk Assurance Committee. This committee is chaired by a Non-Executive Member of the Department’s Board.

Climate Change

Baroness Featherstone: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what priority the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy places on climate change; how many of its civil servants currently work on climate change in a full- or part-time capacity; and how many civil servants worked on climate change in a full- or part-time capacity in the Department of Energy and Climate Change before it was disbanded (1) at the time the Department was closed, (2) in 2015, (3) in 2014, and (4) in 2013.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The Department’s activity to tackle climate change cuts across the work of various teams and is undertaken by officials who, as well as energy and climate change, also work to deliver the department’s other priorities.Consequently, it is not possible to provide an exact number of officials who work on energy and climate change issues. However, I would like to reassure the noble Lady that delivery of the Government’s commitments on climate change remains a key priority for the department.

Radioactive Waste

Lord Judd: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress is being made by the national geological screening process to establish, in terms of the long-term geology and safety, what sites within the UK will be most appropriate for the siting of a national nuclear waste repository; and whether the screening includes possible maritime sites.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: Radioactive Waste Management, the delivery body for a geological disposal facility, are gathering information about the type of rock, rock structure, groundwater, natural processes and resources for regions across England, Wales and Northern Ireland that will be relevant to a geological disposal safety case. This information will be made publicly available, and will help communities better understand their potential suitability to host a geological disposal facility. It will not determine if any particular location, region or area can definitively host one. That can only be done through extensive local investigations. No sites have been selected or are under consideration. The Government is committed to a consent based approach for siting a geological disposal facility, which will involve working with communities that are willing to participate in the siting process. The design of a geological disposal facility could allow the underground facilities to extend offshore if accessed from onshore surface facilities. Therefore screening will consider the geological environment up to 20km offshore in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Companies: Registration

Baroness Altmann: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to improve the scrutiny of company formations, in the light of reports of UK-registered companies being used to operate international scams.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: When a company incorporates with Companies House, information is required about the company’s type, its name and registered office, its directors and shareholders, its share structure and, under measures that came into force in June this year, its beneficial owners – the people with significant influence and control over it. Copies of the company’s governing documents are also required.A number of checks are undertaken to ensure this information is complete, formatted correctly and that it meets the requirements of the Companies Act 2006. If these requirements are not met, the application will be rejected and the company will not be incorporated.Incorporation allows the company to take actions such as opening a bank account in its own name. But when it first seeks to do this, the company and the relevant officers of the company will be subject to due diligence processes by the bank or other relevant obliged entities with which it is entering into a business relationship. UK companies are subject to customer due diligence many times throughout their lifetime.

Package Holidays: EU Law

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in pursuing the negotiations for Brexit, whether they will seek to retain the ability of consumers to obtain both financial and injury compensation through the Package Travel Directive 1990 and the Package Travel Directive 2015.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: Departments are currently working with stakeholders to understand the impacts that withdrawal from the EU will have on businesses, consumers and other economic actors - we will work to ensure the best possible outcome for UK consumers. The Government will set out its broad plans before triggering Article 50 by the end of next March.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Occupied Territories: Housing

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel regarding reports of Israeli settlers illegally obtaining Palestinian-owned land in East Jerusalem.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: While we have not raised this issue, we will continue to make clear our concerns over East Jerusalem to the Israeli authorities and the Municipality of Jerusalem, both bilaterally and in co-operation with our EU partners. We view any attempts to change the facts on the ground as a serious provocation likely to raise tensions and cause unnecessary suffering to ordinary Palestinians, as well as being harmful to the peace process and in contravention of international law.

Israel: Palestinians

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel concerning restrictions on the movement of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We continue to call on the governments of Israel and Egypt to show maximum flexibility in opening the crossings into Gaza to help facilitate travel in and out of Gaza. Officials from our Embassy in Tel Aviv most recently raised the issue of movement and access with the Israeli authorities on 5 December. We also remain deeply concerned about restrictions on freedom of movement between the West Bank and East Jerusalem. We continue to work closely with EU partners to call on Israel to ease access these restrictions. Our Embassy in Tel Aviv regularly lobbies the Israeli authorities on the issue of movement and access.

Israel: Palestinians

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel concerning reports of Palestinians being injured by Israeli forces and settlers while harvesting olives.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We raised a number of allegations with the Israeli authorities on 14 November, and have urged for a thorough investigation and for any perpetrators to be brought to justice.

Israel: Palestinians

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel in response to the report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs that Israeli officials seized an electric generator and a metal-cutting machine belonging to an aid organization near Nablus.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: Whilst we have not raised this specific issue with the Israeli authorities, the UK regularly raises its concerns about confiscations with the Government of Israel.

Israel: Palestinians

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel regarding the reports alleging physical assault by Israeli settlers on Palestinians living in the West Bank.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Government condemns all acts of violence by extremist settlers. Settler violence is an abhorrent phenomenon which must be tackled firmly. We have repeatedly raised with the Israeli authorities our concerns about incidents of settler violence and intimidation, including the importance of bringing the extremist settlers responsible to justice.We raised a number of allegations concerning violence against Palestinians during the olive harvest with the Israeli authorities on 14 November, and have urged for a thorough investigation and for any perpetrators to be brought to justice.

Saudi Arabia: Migrant Workers

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Baroness Goldie on 9 November (HL Deb, col 1146), what assessment they have made of the legislative protections afforded to migrant workers in Saudi Arabia; whether they have raised concerns regarding these protections with the government of Saudi Arabia; and if so, what was the outcome.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We have some concerns that the rights of third-country nationals working in the Kingdom are not always fully respected, mainly because existing legislation is not always rigorously enforced. Where we have concerns about the legislative or regulatory protection of migrant workers, we raise these with Governments.

Syria: Military Intervention

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 1 December, what discussions they have had with the government of Turkey about the area of Northern Syria now occupied by the Turkish army; what proportion of the occupied area was previously controlled by Daesh; whether Afrin Canton is now under Turkish attack; and whether Turkey gives advance warning of its plans to the United States and British commanders.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: As members of the Global Coalition, the UK and Turkey regularly discuss operations in Syria. The majority of the area in northern Syria currently held by Turkish-backed opposition was previously dominated by Daesh. We are not aware of any recent clashes between the Turkish-backed opposition and the People's Protection Units in Afrin Canton. We call on all parties to work alongside the Global Coalition to achieve our shared objective of defeating Daesh.

Ahmet Turk

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to make representations to the government of Turkey about the imprisonment in Silivri Prison of Ahmet Turk, a co-founder of the HDP party.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK has raised the detention and treatment of Kurdish politicians with the Turkish authorities at Ministerial level, and will continue to do so where we have human rights concerns.

Embassies: Demonstrations

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 28 November (HL3232) concerning the Foreign Secretary’s remarks encouraging demonstrations outside the Russian Embassy, whether it is their policy that such demonstrations should not be encouraged; and, if so, whether they have given assurances to that effect to the government of Russia.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The words of the Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson) in Parliament on 11 November reflected overwhelming concern at Russia’s actions in Syria, which are contributing to the appalling humanitarian situation. The UK will continue to urge Russia to work with the international community to establish a credible ceasefire, and begin working for a political transition that represents the only long-term solution. There is of course a well-established right for citizens in the UK to conduct peaceful demonstrations on issues of concern. The UK is scrupulous about fully meeting and respecting its obligations under the Vienna Convention. We discuss these shared obligations with the Russian Government on a regular basis.

Hong Kong: Politics and Government

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to conduct a comprehensive review of the implementation of the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: As a co-signatory of the Sino-British Joint Declaration, the Government is committed to monitoring thoroughly its implementation on an ongoing basis. We do this through the Foreign Secretary's Six Monthly Report to Parliament on Hong Kong. We reaffirmed this approach in the Government's response to the Foreign Affairs Committee report on Hong Kong published in March 2015.

North Korea: Sanctions

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to United Nations Security Council Resolution 2321, whether any UK funds or United Kingdom nationals provide specialised teaching and training which could contribute to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea’s proliferation activities or the development of nuclear weapons delivery systems, including business and economic management training that may be used to acquire or sell goods used in connection with weapons.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We are not aware of any UK funding or UK nationals providing teaching and training which could contribute to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s proliferation activities or the development of its nuclear weapons delivery systems.

North Korea: Sanctions

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to United Nations Security Council Resolution 2321, whether they intend to reduce the number of staff at the Embassy of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in London and what steps they will take to limit the number of bank accounts held by Democratic People's Republic of Korea diplomats stationed in the UK.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Government welcomes the unanimous adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2321 and work has begun to ensure that its provisions are fully implemented and enforced within the UK. We continue to have diplomatic relations with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Nigeria: Female Genital Mutilation

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Nigeria about the issue of female genital mutilation.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK is working closely with the Nigerian government to eradicate the abusive practice of female genital mutilation in Nigeria.Nigeria is one of 17 countries targeted by the Department for International Development's £35 million programme working towards ending Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) in Africa.The programme focuses on three areas: building the evidence base for tackling FGM, working with the UN on challenging social norms and with governments on policy measures, as well as support for Africa-led campaigns.Our broader development programme in Nigeria also includes initiatives that tackle violence against women and girls. This includes UK support for implementation of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, which criminalizes female genital mutilation.

Department for Exiting the European Union

EU Budget: Contributions

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by the Secretary of State for Exiting the EU on 1 December (HC Deb, col 1648), whether they are considering making continuing financial contributions to the EU budget following the UK’s exit from the EU in order to continue trading with EU countries; and, if so, why.

Lord Bridges of Headley: We are focussed on securing the best possible deal for the United Kingdom as we leave the European Union. Once we have left, it will be for the United Kingdom to decide how taxpayers' money is spent.

The Senior Deputy Speaker

Palace of Westminster: Repairs and Maintenance

Lord Storey: To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to the Written Answer by the Chairman of Committees on 8 April 2014, which museums or related institutions have received encaustic tiles from the Palace of Westminster.

Lord McFall of Alcluith: Following the decision by the Administration and Works Committee in the Lords and the Administration Committee in the Commons that in cases where encaustic tiles from the Palace of Westminster cannot be re-used elsewhere, some of these should be donated to museums or related institutions, encaustic tiles have been donated to the Tile Trail in Stoke on Trent; to a recycled mosaics project to commemorate the pottery works in Stoke on Trent; and to St Augustine’s Church in Ramsgate.

Department for Education

Grammar Schools

Lord Watson of Invergowrie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have assessed the relative strengths of grammar schools and Sure Start Centres in relation to ensuring social mobility; and if so, what data were used and which stakeholders were consulted.

Lord Nash: This Government is committed to tackling poverty and disadvantage, and enabling all children to have the opportunity to achieve their potential, at every stage of their education. 99% of selective schools are Good or Outstanding, and 82% are Outstanding[1], and children from disadvantaged backgrounds benefit even more from a grammar school education than other pupils at those schools.[2] That is why we want more children to have the opportunity to go to a grammar school. We recognise, however, that we need to do more to promote greater social mobility. That is why we are consulting on proposals to ensure selective schools admit more pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds, and play a greater role in helping to raise standards across other schools. We also recognise the role of early years education in promoting social mobility. We are considering the future direction for children’s centres and will provide further detail in due course, including how stakeholders and members of the public can contribute.  [1] 'The file of Ofsted Management Information on Schools, as at 30 November 2016[2] Please see page 23 of the attached report by the Centre for Market and Public Organisation (CMPO), 'The Result of 11 Plus Selection: An Investigation into Opportunities and Outcomes for Pupils in Selective LEAs' which says, “For FSM pupils the gains to attending a grammar school are more substantive (around 7 to 8 grade points) without extra penalties for those not making it. Hence the overall picture is that the minority of high ability pupils who are eligible for FSM achieve high attainment in grammars.” 



Ofsted Management Information on Schools, 30 Novem
(Excel SpreadSheet, 6.04 MB)




Report by CMPO on an Investigation into Opportunit
(PDF Document, 190.57 KB)

Ministry of Justice

Lord Chancellor

Lord Kinnock: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to amend the Oath of Office of the Lord Chancellor to "defend the independence of the judiciary" as contained in the Constitutional Reform Act 2005.

Lord Keen of Elie: There are no plans to amend the Oath.

Ministry of Defence

South Sudan: Peacekeeping Operations

Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many UK armed forces personnel who are (1) women, and (2) men, will be deployed in the UN peacekeeping force in South Sudan.

Earl Howe: I refer the Noble Baroness to the answer I gave her on 13 December 2016 to Question HL3805.



HL3805 - WQnA extract on South Sudan
(Word Document, 14.06 KB)

Ministry of Defence: Gender

Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many gender focal points there are in (1) the UK armed forces, (2) the Ministry of Defence, and (3) the UK armed forces personnel deployed in the UN peacekeeping force in South Sudan.

Earl Howe: I refer the Noble Baroness to the answer I gave her on 13 December 2016 to Question HL3806.



HL3806 - WQnA extract on MOD Gender
(Word Document, 14.16 KB)

RAF Leuchars

Lord Campbell of Pittenweem: To ask Her Majesty’s Government on how many occasions since 1 January 2015 the diversionary runway at Leuchars has been used; which aircraft types have used it; and why.

Earl Howe: Details of military aircraft required to divert to Leuchars Station since January 2015 are provided in the table below:  DateAircraft TypeHome StationReason6 February 2015TucanoLinton-on-OuseTechnical fault9 February 2015TucanoLinton-on-OuseTechnical fault11 May 2015Tornado GR4 x 2LossiemouthWeather12 June 2015HawkLeemingMedical25 June 2015Tornado GR4LossiemouthTechnical fault29 June 2015TucanoLinton-on-OuseTechnical fault8 July 2015TucanoLinton-on-OuseTechnical fault30 July 2015Tornado GR4LossiemouthBirdstrike7 September 2015TyphoonConingsbyBirdstrike29 October 2015Tornado GR4LossiemouthTechnical fault17 November 2015TyphoonConingsbyWeather27 January 2016Tornado GR4LossiemouthTechnical fault18 May 2016Tornado GR4LossiemouthTechnical fault26 October 2016F15 x 2LakenheathTechnical fault. 2nd aircraft acted as escort

RAF Leuchars

Lord Campbell of Pittenweem: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what provision has been made for the refuelling of aircraft required to use the diversionary runway at Leuchars.

Earl Howe: The RAF maintains sufficient fuel stocks at Leuchars Station to refuel military aircraft required to use the diversionary runway.

Type 45 Destroyers

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government by what date the intercooler and generator problems on all T45 destroyers will have been resolved.

Earl Howe: As with all equipment projects, the cost and schedule of the Power Improvement Project will be set at the main investment decision. Disclosing our planning assumptions prior to this point would compromise the Ministry of Defence's negotiating position and therefore be prejudicial to our commercial interests.

Type 45 Destroyers

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they consider that the T45 destroyers are fully operational and could be deployed with system certainty in war.

Earl Howe: All Type 45 Destroyers remain in the operational cycle and continue to be routinely deployed in support of national interests.

Astute Class Submarines

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the planned date for the naming ceremony for the 7th Astute-class submarine.

Earl Howe: The date for the naming ceremony of the 7th Astute Class submarine is not planned to be scheduled until nearer the time of its handover to the Royal Navy, which is expected to be in 2024.

Astute Class Submarines

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken to assess whether an 8th Astute class submarine could be built prior to the first successor submarine being named.

Earl Howe: The Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 reaffirmed the Government's plans for seven Astute Class submarines and four ballistic missile submarines, of which the first of class has been named Dreadnought.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Lord Campbell of Pittenweem: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many F-35 aircraft have been delivered to the United Kingdom.

Earl Howe: As at 16 December 2016, the UK has taken delivery of seven F-35B Lightning aircraft.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Food Innovation Network

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what budget they have allocated to the Food Innovation Network over the next three years; and what arrangements they intend to put in place for small rural companies to take advantage of the network.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: Defra, the Biotechnology and Biosciences Research Council and the York, North Yorkshire and East Riding Enterprise Partnership are jointly providing a total of £100,000 over two years to co-ordinate the Food Innovation Network. We have appointed the Knowledge Transfer Network to carry out this coordinator role. The aim of the Network is to connect small and medium-sized companies with the help, expertise and funding they need to innovate and thereby improve their productivity and competitiveness. This includes working with businesses in both rural and urban areas to raise their awareness of the support that is available and providing a website which makes information available to support business innovation and direct them to where they can access further support.. The Network will also pilot approaches at a local level to maximise ways to support rural companies.

Agriculture: Research

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to guarantee funding for agricultural research programmes that are currently funded by the EU, for the first five years following Brexit.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: While the UK is still a member of the EU, UK organisations can continue to bid directly to the European Commission, on a competitive basis, for EU funding. Even when specific projects continue beyond the UK’s departure from the EU, such as universities participating in Horizon 2020. Decisions for future support will be made following discussions between stakeholders, Treasury and other interested Government Departments.

Floods: Business

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 25 November (HL3252), whether the number of such non-residential properties has declined or grown since 2006; and by what number.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: The Environment Agency estimates the number of non-residential properties in areas at high risk of flooding from rivers and the sea to have increased by about 25,000 in England since 2006. This is primarily due to improvements in modelling and changes to the classification of properties.The number of properties in areas at high risk of flooding from surface water was first estimated in December 2013. Since then, the number of non-residential properties in areas at high risk of flooding from surface water has increased by about 12,000 in England. This increase is primarily due to improvements in the base maps used for modelling data.The property type information and the modelling methods upon which these estimates are based have improved significantly over this period of time, making exact comparisons more difficult.

Floods: Housing

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 23 November (HL3251), whether the number of such homes has declined or grown since 2006; and by what number.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: The Environment Agency estimates the number of residential properties in areas at high risk of flooding from rivers and the sea to have decreased by about 224,000 in England since 2006. This is due to the delivery of flood and coastal risk management schemes along with improvements in modelling and changes to the classification of risk.The number of properties in areas at high risk of flooding from surface water was first estimated in December 2013. Since then, the number of residential properties in areas at high risk of flooding from surface water has increased by about 30,000 in England. This increase is primarily due to improvements in the base maps used for modelling data.The property type information and the modelling methods upon which these estimates are based have improved significantly over this period of time, making exact comparisons more difficult.

Food: Waste

Baroness Byford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 7 December (HL Deb, col 728), how they define "95% of all supermarkets".

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: Courtauld 2025 was launched earlier this year and has more than 120 signatories, including retailers. The 95% figure represents the UK grocery market and is based on market share. This includes Aldi, Asda, the Co-operative, Iceland, Lidl, Marks & Spencer, Morrisons, the Musgrave Group (Centra in the UK), Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose. There are also just under 50 food manufacturers and trade associations, including many of the main organisations involved in redistribution of surplus food. Local authorities, representing more than 40% of the UK population, are also signatories.

Food: Waste

Baroness Byford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 7 December (HL Deb, cols 728–9), what progress the Waste and Resources Action Programme is making on clarifying date-labelling.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) worked with the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Defra in 2010 to produce guidance to industry on best practice in the application of date labels on food. WRAP has also worked with retailers and manufacturers through the Courtauld Commitment to help improve labelling. Defra published data labelling guidance in 2011. WRAP has made significant progress. Many fewer products now have two dates on the same pack (for example a ‘sell by’ or ‘display date’ as well as ‘best before’ or ‘use by’), which was a major cause of confusion. WRAP also found that hard cheeses such as cheddar sometimes had a ‘best before’ date and sometimes a ‘use by’ date, and through working with Dairy UK and others there is now much more consistency with ‘best before’ being used, giving consumers flexibility to eat the product after the date if they have not eaten it in time. WRAP also works through Love Food Hate Waste to help consumers to understand better the meaning of dates, and the information on labels more generally, to help them to get more out of the food they buy. WRAP is working with the FSA and Defra to support industry implementing more changes to help people waste less of the food they buy, through clearer date labelling and, for example, more effective storage and freezing advice.

Home Office

Female Genital Mutilation

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress they have made in identifying a more reliable methodology than the one currently used to measure the number of girls at risk of undergoing female genital mutilation in the UK.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a crime and it is child abuse. We will not tolerate a practice that can cause extreme and lifelong physical and psychological suffering to women and girls.The Government has taken a range of measures to support professionals, increase our understanding of FGM and co-ordinate activity across Government.This includes:• a mandatory reporting duty requiring regulated health and social care professionals and teachers to report known cases of FGM in under 18s to the police came into force on 31 October 2015.• publishing new multi-agency guidance on 1 April for all frontline professionals, including the police, which is statutory, for the first time.• over 70,000 professionals have completed our free FGM e-learning, which we have updated to include information on the recent changes to the law.• the Department of Health’s £4 million FGM Prevention Programme which is improving the NHS response • Department for Education have funded the Barnardo’s and Local Government Association’s National FGM Centre which is working to strengthen the social care response.The Government also recognises the importance of gathering and disseminating information on the prevalence of, and attitudes to, FGM. In addition, we are part-funding a 2015 prevalence study and we have also introduced the recording and publication of FGM patient data across the NHS in England. We will not stop FGM until we have changed attitudes within communities. In July 2016, the Department of Health delivered a targeted patient and public facing FGM prevention advertising campaign based on our understanding of the motivations for FGM which has generated over 650,000 views on social media.We continue to work closely with community organisations, faith groups and survivors to better understand the motivations behind FGM. The FGM role and function is to coordinate work across Government and carry out outreach work. However, we are clear that all agencies have a role to play in tackling FGM.

HM Treasury

Landlords: Taxation

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to take steps to ensure that limited companies are not better placed than other landlords in relation to the taxation of profits engendered by letting residential properties.

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to introduce plans to prevent landlords of residential properties from recouping the cost of changes to the taxation of rents of such properties which will come into force next year; and if so, how.

Lord Young of Cookham: Using actual self-assessment data, HM Revenue and Customs estimate that only 1 in 5 landlords will pay more tax as a result of this measure. Given that only a small proportion of the housing market is affected by these changes, the Government does not expect them to have a large impact on rent levels.   Incorporated businesses will continue to receive relief at the corporate tax rate. However, the rate of relief (currently 20%) is not more generous than the rate of income tax relief once these changes are fully in place by 2020-21.

Mortgages

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to regulate further the granting of residential mortgages at high multiples of income.

Lord Young of Cookham: The Government has no plans to regulate mortgages at high multiples of income. The Government has granted the Financial Policy Committee (FPC) powers of direction with regard to owner-occupied mortgages. The Government recently brought forward secondary legislation to grant the FPC powers of direction with regard to buy to let mortgages as well. This instrument has been debated and approved in this House and the other place. The FPC is a policy committee of the independent Bank of England. It is for the Committee to decide if, when and how to use its powers.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

The Countess of Mar: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to support disabled women who rely for income on permanent health insurance policies that cover them until the age of 60, the default retirement age at the time the policies were bought, and will now not receive a state pension until the age of 65 to 67.

Lord Young of Cookham: The decision to equalise the State Pension age for men and women dates back to the Pensions Act 1995. The Government provides benefits to support those unable to work to State Pension age due to a health condition or disability. People in this position may be eligible for Employment and Support Allowance, which provides income replacement for people with a health condition or disability, and Personal Independence Payment, which helps with some of the extra costs caused by long-term health or disability.

Fuels: Taxation

Lord Darling of Roulanish: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much was raised on fuel duty and VAT on fuel for each of the last 10 financial years.

Lord Young of Cookham: Receipts from fuel duty are published in the Hydrocarbon Oils statistical bulletin and the figures from the last ten financial years are shown below:YearReceipts (£ bn)2006/0723.62007/0824.92008/0924.62009/1026.22010/1127.32011/1226.82012/1326.62013/1426.92014/1527.22015/1627.6 For VAT, the information requested is not available. HM Revenue and Customs does not collect data on VAT revenues from particular goods and services.

Cabinet Office

Charities: Grants

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Statement by Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen on 2 December (HLWS306) concerning Government grant standards, what was the total amount of donations made by Government departments and the NHS to charities in each of the last five years for which records are available.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen: The information requested is not collated centrally.

Civil Servants: Recruitment

Lord Moonie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they use responses to questions about gender identity in some civil service job applications to determine the best-qualified candidate, and if such a question is not answered how detrimental this would be to the application.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen: The Civil Service recruits on the basis of merit and assesses on the basis of evidence supplied by the candidate. This is in line with fair and open competition rules as laid out in the recruitment principles upheld by the Civil Service Commission.Gender identity is not used as part of the sifting process of job applications within the Civil Service. Candidates are asked this information for diversity monitoring purposes only.The Civil Service aims to become the most inclusive employer in the UK, with the Talent Action Plan focussing on removing barriers for those from underrepresented groups.

Civil Servants: Pay

Lord Moonie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the ratio between the salary of a civil servant on the lowest grade to the Permanent Secretary in each of the Government departments represented in the Cabinet.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen: Government departments do not publish details of the salary ratio of their highest to lowest paid employees. The Office for National Statistics do publish the salary ratio of highest to median earners for each Civil Service organisation. These ratios are published annually as part of Civil Service Statistics and can be found attached.



Civil Service Statistics 2016
(PDF Document, 740.18 KB)

Department of Health

In Vitro Fertilisation

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Prior of Brampton on 8 November (HL2858 and HL2861), why the data provided by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) in table 3 of the first of those answers detail that no live births resulted from frozen donated oocytes between 2008–14, whereas the data provided by the HFEA included in the second of those answers detail that in relation to treatments that took place prior to 30 June 2014, 72 patients aged 35 and over using donated frozen oocytes had a live birth.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Further to the Written Answers of 8 November, officials have advised that, due to administrative error, the information relating to live births shown in Table 3 was incorrect. A revised version of the table is shown below:YearsThawedFertilisedDeveloped normallyTransferred2008No treatments were recorded where patients used thawed donated eggs2009271616620101898888442011528232232110201245723222310220135832992921112014 (mid year for births)8524814591692015 (mid year for treatments)975589576196 YearsPregnanciesMiscarriage (Events)Live birth (events)2008No treatments were recorded where patients used thawed donated eggs2009Less than 50Less than 520109Less than 57201119Less than 516201224Less than 521201318Less than 5162014 (mid year for births)37Less than 5202015 (mid year for treatments)34** Source: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority *Part year data not available. This corrects my earlier answer.

Abortion

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 1 December (HL3358), how many letters were sent to registered medical practitioners by officials to remind them of their legal obligation to report terminations of pregnancy within 14 days, in each of the last five years for which records are available.

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 1 December (HL3359), how many registered medical practitioners have been reported for suspected violations of the Abortion Regulations 1991, having failed to report terminations within the 14-day period, in each of the last five years for which records are available.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Department does not hold a record of how many letters have been sent out in each of the last five years. The Department has not reported to the police any incidents of suspected violation of the Act and Regulations relating to Registered Medical Practitioners terminating a pregnancy who have not given notice in form HSA4 to the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) within 14 days of the termination. Where HSA4 forms have been submitted late, the Department is working closely with doctors, hospitals/clinics and the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. The Department is helping to identify issues with HSA4 submission to support doctors, hospitals and clinics in ensuring that protocols and processes exist internally to ensure the transmission of HSA4 forms meets the legislative framework. The Department currently receives around two-thirds of HSA4 forms electronically and is actively encouraging more doctors to submit HSA4 forms online. Receiving HSA4 forms online reduces the risk of late submission of forms to the CMO.

Abortion

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 1 December (HL3359), from what authority, legislative or common law, the phrase "wilful non-compliance" derives with respect to the Abortion Regulations 1991.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The phrase “wilful non-compliance” stems from Section 2(3) of the Abortion Act 1967 which provides that any person who wilfully contravenes or wilfully fails to comply with the requirements of regulations under subsection (1) of this section shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine without limit.

National Screening Committee

Lord Shinkwin: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 22 November (HL3125), whether the public disclosure of a relevant interest is sufficient in all cases relating to appointments to the UK National Screening Committee; and if not, what types of interest would prevent an individual from being appointed or from continuing to serve on the Committee.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) requests that all members declare any personal or business interests which the public might reasonably think could influence their judgement as part of the activities undertaken for the UK NSC on the conflict of interest form and declaration. The conflict of interest form further requests for the member to include any personal direct and indirect interests, including close family members and others living in the same household. The form is consistent with those of other scientific advisory committees and upholds the seven principles of public life – the Nolan principles. Members are able to express any changes in situations at any time and are directed to withdraw from any discussions where they feel they cannot act impartially. Termination of membership from the UK NSC may arise where the Chair takes in good belief that the member has acted dishonestly or under duress to influence a recommendation.

Pregnancy: Screening

Lord Shinkwin: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton 21 November (HL3063) indicating that no equality impact assessment was conducted prior to the decision to introduce non-invasive prenatal testing on the NHS, what is the basis for the statement that they are satisfied that the screening programme is compliant with the Department’s obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and that the programme is compliant with any obligations under the Equality Act 2010.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Non-invasive prenatal testing for Down’s, Edwards’ and Patau’s syndromes is an additional test to be offered as part of the current NHS Fetal Anomaly Screening Programme, and as it does not fundamentally alter the choices already available to women, we consider that there will be no impact on race, age, disability, gender reassignment sex or sexual orientation, religion or belief, marriage and civil partnership or pregnancy and maternity for the purposes of the Public Sector Equality Duty under the Equality Act 2010. The Department also considers that the programme is compliant with the Equality Act because it is not discriminatory and, with regard to the three elements of the Public Sector Equality Duty in s.149 of that Act, it has a neutral impact. The Department considers that adding this optional alternative procedure to the current screening programme is compliant with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as the test is intended to allow pregnant women to identify possible abnormalities in a foetus with more accuracy and in a less intrusive way than is possible through other screening procedures. Pregnant women will then be able to make a better informed choice in the light of the screening results. All relevant equality duties will be further considered by Public Health England during the evaluative roll-out.

Human Embryo Experiments

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to extend the 14-day limit beyond which destructive experiments on human embryos may not take place to 28 days.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Government has no plans to amend the time limit in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 on the use of human embryos for research.

Nurses: Training

Baroness Wheeler: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 22 November (HL Deb, col 1833), whether an independent assessment of recruitment levels will be carried out in January 2017 once the rate of applications has been calculated.

Lord Prior of Brampton: For courses beginning on 1 August 2017, the main deadline for the majority of full-time undergraduate courses through the University and Colleges’ Admissions Service (UCAS) is 15 January 2017. However, universities can accept applications up until August 2017, and applicants can also apply directly for some part-time and postgraduate courses at specific higher education institutions. The Department of Health intends to work with ‎the Department for Education, UCAS and other healthcare education bodies to determine the most appropriate point and method following 15 January 2017, to assess available information on applications for pre-registration nursing, midwifery and allied health profession courses.

Tobacco

Viscount Ridley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the percentage of men in the UK aged 16 to 29 who (1) smoke cigarettes, and (2) use snus, on a daily basis.

Viscount Ridley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to include scientific evidence about the potential of snus as a smoking substitute in their Tobacco Control Plan.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Statistics on daily smoking are not routinely gathered. In 2015, the Office of National Statistics Annual Population Survey 2015 showed that 17.6% of 18-19 year old men, 24% of 20-24 year old men, and 27% of 25-29 year old men were current smokers. No data is collected on snus use. The Tobacco Control plan will provide a framework and call to action for wide ranging future work to further reduce the prevalence of tobacco use.

Doctors: Recruitment

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many of the promised 5,000 extra doctors will be medical assistant posts.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Government has committed to providing an additional 5,000 doctors working in general practice by 2020. Medical assistants do not form part of this commitment.

Female Genital Mutilation

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what analysis they have made of the Female Genital Mutilation Enhanced Data in relation to the support provided by the NHS to women and girls who have had or who are at risk of female genital mutilation.

Lord Prior of Brampton: National Health Service commissioners actively use Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) data to plan FGM services locally. For example, in London, NHS England is piloting the triangulation of data with local population prevalence and police data, to evaluate the multi-agency approach to their FGM prevention work, and they will explore national roll-out of this approach in the new year. In addition, NHS England is working with police and social care partners to overlay the information from the NHS Digital reports with other FGM information sources to create a more extensive picture of FGM. This in turn will build a broader understanding of FGM, and how best to use this combined information to commission appropriate services for girls and women affected.

NHS: Innovation

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many innovations invested by companies such as Medtech have been taken up abroad due to lack of NHS adoption.

Lord Prior of Brampton: This information is not collected centrally.

NHS: Innovation

Lord Roberts of Llandudno: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many innovations by companies such as Medtech, which have received funding from taxpayer-funded grants, have been adopted by the UK and how many have not.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The information requested is not readily available and could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.

Pancreatic Cancer

Lord Porter of Spalding: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to improve early diagnosis rates for pancreatic cancer.

Lord Prior of Brampton: Improving early diagnosis of cancer is a priority for this Government. NHS England’s Accelerate, Coordinate, Evaluate pilots are exploring new models for delivering a diagnosis quickly and effectively, including piloting a multi-disciplinary diagnostic centre, which we hope will be particularly effective for patients with vague or unclear symptoms. If successful, NHS England will work with Cancer Alliances to support wider roll out across the country in future years. An updated suspected cancer referral guideline by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), including new guidelines for pancreatic cancer, which was published last June, will continue to support general practitioners (GPs) to identify patients and urgently refer them as appropriate, where pancreatic cancer is suspected. NICE noted that more lives could be saved each year in England if GPs followed the new guideline, which encourages GPs to think of cancer sooner and lower the referral threshold. A copy of the NICE guideline Suspected cancer: recognition and referral is attached. Public Health England is currently working with stakeholders, including clinicians and charities to develop a generic Be Clear on Cancer approach, which will enable us to cover a range of cancer symptoms in one campaign. A regional pilot campaign to raise awareness of a range of abdominal symptoms that can indicate a wider number of cancers, including pancreatic cancer, will run from February to March 2017. The regional pilot will be evaluated and the results will help inform decisions about how to expand this campaign in future.



NICE guideline
(PDF Document, 306.04 KB)

Foetal Alcohol Syndrome

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to assess and tackle the problems occasioned by foetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Department has been exploring the feasibility of commissioning new research in the area of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. However, identifying methodologically feasible and robust new research in this area is challenging, expensive and faces ethical challenges. The UK Chief Medical Officers’ Low Risk Drinking Guidelines provide the public with the most up-to-date scientific information to help people make informed decisions about their own drinking. A copy is attached. The guideline for women who are pregnant or think they could become pregnant, is that the safest approach is not to drink alcohol at all, to reduce risks to the baby to a minimum.



CMO LOW RISK DRINKING GUIDELINES
(PDF Document, 323.17 KB)

Mental Health Services: Finance

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 23 November (HL Deb, col 1932), what is the breakdown of the 88 projects in receipt of a share of £15 million of investment to increase safe places, and what are the criteria used to allocate funding.

Lord Prior of Brampton: A list of local areas which will receive funding under the improving health-based places of safety capital scheme is attached. Applications for funding were assessed against criteria agreed jointly by the Department of Health, the Home Office and NHS England. To be considered for funding, bids had to demonstrate sustainability and how they would satisfy local need and demand, how they would reduce the use of police stations for adults detained under Section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983 and support the elimination of the use of police stations for children and young people under the age of 18, compliance with relevant legislation, and a commitment to shared learning. Applications also had to be developed and agreed by local Crisis Care Concordat Groups. Full details of the criteria for applications are attached.



PROJECT LIST 
(PDF Document, 241.23 KB)




CRITERIA FOR APPLICATIONS
(Word Document, 292.08 KB)

Commission on the Funding of Care and Support

Baroness Gardner of Parkes: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the recommendations of the Dilnot Commission will be implemented by the end of this Parliament.

Baroness Gardner of Parkes: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the recommendations of the Dilnot Commission, when stakeholders, including local authorities, will be consulted on the implementation of the care cap; and what engagement mechanisms will be used.

Baroness Gardner of Parkes: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that local authorities will have funds available to meet the recommendations of the Dilnot Commission; and how funding will be linked to local levels of need.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Government remains committed to introducing a cap on care costs and extension of means tested support, which will be implemented from April 2020. The Spending Review 2015 set budgets for the next four years to 2019-20. The final year includes funding to cover the costs of local authorities preparing to implement the changes the following year. Decisions about the allocation of funding for these reforms will be confirmed nearer the time. The Department will continue to develop the policy underpinning the cap on care costs in the run-up to a consultation on draft regulations and guidance in the summer of 2018. The Department will work closely with the sector to ensure that their views are taken into account as we plan for implementation. In addition to the cap on care costs, the Dilnot commission recommended the introduction of national eligibility criteria and universal Deferred Payment Agreements, both of which have been implemented from April 2015.

Social Services: Fees and Charges

Lord Warner: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to bring into effect the provisions in the Care Act 2014 for capping individual liability for meeting the costs of adult social care; and if so, when.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The Government remains committed to introducing a cap on care costs and extension of means-tested support, which will be implemented from April 2020.

Diseases

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the proposed £100,000 quality-assured life year threshold for evaluating highly specialised technologies on access to, and the uptake of, new medicines for patients with rare and complex diseases.

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the number of patients who will be affected by the proposed £100,000 quality-assured life year threshold for evaluating highly specialised technologies.

Lord Prior of Brampton: We are committed to ensuring that patients with rare and ultra-rare diseases in England are able to access effective treatments. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has advised that the proposed arrangements are intended to provide clarity about the level of cost effectiveness below which funding will be made available, automatically and without delay, for highly specialised technologies that receive positive recommendations from NICE. Subject to the outcome of the current consultation exercise, those products that have a value proposition of more than £100,000 per quality-adjusted life year will be provided with a further opportunity to be considered for use in the National Health Service, through NHS England’s annual process for deciding which new treatments and services will be routinely commissioned. Furthermore, the proposed changes are intended to clarify NICE’s existing responsibility to determine the period within which funding for recommended products needs to be made available by commissioners of services. This clarity should allow companies and commissioners to work on commercial arrangements, in advance of, and in parallel with, the development of NICE technology appraisal and highly specialised technology guidance. In circumstances where this may not be possible, specific requests from commissioners to vary the timescale for the funding requirement will be considered by NICE. As these proposals are still subject to possible change, no assessment has been made of the number of patients who may be affected or of any effect on uptake and equity of access to medicines for very rare diseases.

Medical Treatments

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that patient groups and patients are consulted on decisions made regarding new treatments as part of NHS England's prioritisation process for investing in specialised services.

Lord Prior of Brampton: NHS England involves patients, patient groups and the public at numerous stages of the process for developing clinical commissioning policies and service specifications that may be subject to a process of relative prioritisation. Clinical policies and service specifications are developed by Clinical Reference Groups (CRGs), which are advisory groups and include patients and patient representatives in their membership. Draft clinical policies and service specifications undergo a process of testing with registered stakeholders before they are submitted for a full public consultation. The CRG will consider the outcome of stakeholder testing and public consultation before submitting the final proposed document to NHS England for the purpose of relative prioritisation. Recommendations on the relative prioritisation of new investments in specialised services are made by the Clinical Priorities Advisory Group, which is independently chaired and which includes patient and public voice representatives in its membership. ​ NHS England held a public consultation on Developing a method to assist investment decisions in specialised commissioning between April and May 2016. NHS England’s response to the consultation can be found attached.



CONSULTATION RESPONSE
(PDF Document, 748.42 KB)

Orphan Drugs

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence intends to develop a new assessment process to evaluate orphan medicines for use in the NHS.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has no plans to develop a new assessment service specifically for orphan medicines.

NHS: Drugs

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made to determine the extent to which NHS England's prioritisation process provides a fair assessment for (1) non-orphan, (2) orphan, and (3) ultra orphan, medicines.

Lord Prior of Brampton: NHS England is waiting for the outcome of the current joint National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and NHS England consultation on proposed changes to arrangements for evaluating and funding drugs and other health technologies, which are appraised through NICE’s technology appraisal and highly specialised technologies programmes. The consultation is due to close on 13 January. Once the responses to the consultation have been reviewed, NHS England and NICE will consider whether any changes to the way orphan drugs are evaluated should be made.

Medical Treatments

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many National Institute for Health and Care Excellence highly specialised technology appraisals they expect to be undertaken in the next 12 months, as a result of the proposed £100,000 quality-assured life year threshold for evaluation.

Lord Prior of Brampton: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has advised that funding for its highly specialised technologies programme allows it to produce guidance for three topics per year.